Mirror, Mirror On The Wall
by Maoriel
Summary: Red roses are symbol of love. It is known. But she said that they were symbol of death, destruction and blood. Apparently, he was thinking same.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1.**

It was dark and cold. Tall brunette was walking in the dark street, hugging herself. She tightened red, knitted scarf around her neck and hugged herself again. January was a really cold month in Midgar.

She sighed and hid her nose into a scarf. Only a few days and she could spend warm nights at the beach with her beloved husband. Cloud promised her. He was working really hard for this past few weeks. It would be their honeymoon too. Unfortunately, they didn't have a honeymoon because of her sister, but Cloud was patient. He waited until Yuffie found an apartment for herself and reassured Tifa that she was a grown woman and she could take care of her. Tifa believed her. And she was glad that despite her rebel and careless personality, her little sister was doing well. So she could spend some time with her husband at warm sands of Costa Del Sol.

She stopped in front of a grocery shop and sighed before entering it. Cloud was coming home today and she needed some ingredients for their dinner. She wrapped her long fingers around doorknob when her PHS rang. She thrust her hand into her handbag and grabbed small, black phone. The brunette looked at screen before answering it. It was Yuffie. The woman pressed on 'Answer' button and brought the phone to her ear.

"Yes?"

"Teef." Cheerful voice rang into her ears. "How are you, sis? How's your emo husband? What are you doing now? How's your..."

"Yuffie." Tifa cut her sister off. "I'm good. My husband is doing well. I'm in front of grocery shop now." She took a long breath and glanced at the empty street. "By the way, why you called me? Something's wrong? " she asked, her voice full with concern. Her little sister chuckled.

"Nah, just wanted to hear your voice." She answered. "I'm so tired from school, you know, and my calculus teacher, Ms. Scarlet Fever is the queen of bitchiness. ARGH! Sometimes I want to wrap my fingers around her pretty neck and choke her, until her pretty face will be as pretty blue as wild tides of the ocean." Yep, Yuffie could be a very poetic person when she was fantasizing about choking her hateful teachers. Tifa giggled. How cute!

"I think, it's pretty rude to call your teacher queen of bitchiness." She chided her little sister. Tifa closed her eyes and imagined how furiously shook her sister her pretty little head.

"Oh, no, sis. Everyone calls her that. Even her crush, Mr. Shinra. They're synonyms, Scarlet and Bitchiness. And she's slutty too. You should see how she batted her eyelashes yesterday when she ran into Mr. Shinra and pressed her boobs on his chest. But that didn't work. Mr. Shinra either is impotent or gay." Young girl announced. Tifa giggled again.

"Or he just doesn't like your calculus teacher." She answered. Yuffie snorted.

"Hell yeah, sis. If he sees you, he'll be head over heels in love with you. But, apparently you're taken by some emo Chocobo-butt. So, keep dreaming Ruffie-boy."

Tifa laughed. It was refreshing to talk to her sister again. She opened her mouth to say something, but closed immediately when she heard soft voices from behind her. She spun around and eyed street. The street was dark and empty, but she was standing in front of bright grocery shop. No one would kidnap her. It was just her imaginations.

She opened her mouth again and slender, bony fingers cupped her mouth. She shivered when she felt someone's lips on her ear. That someone breathed in her neck. His fingers curled around her neck. They were thin and cold. Oh, so cold. Like winter itself wanted to wrap its fingers around her. She shuddered.

"You know, you don't belong here." Voice murmured in her ear. It was quiet, husky voice. She tried to scream, but kidnappers right hand was muffling her voice and his left hand was traveling from her wrist to her long, graceful neck. He wrapped his fingers around her neck again, like warrior grabs hilt of his trusted sword and Tifa could feel how oxygen disappeared from her lungs. Cold lips touched her ear again and murmured quietly:

"You're too beautiful to our harsh reality. Angels like you don't belong here. You don't belong here."

Last Tifa could remember was how Yuffie frantically called her name from PHS.

* * *

Yuffie Kisaragi was standing in front of her sister's coffin, clutching a bouquet of blood-red roses, watching her sister's pale, emotionless face and listening to some freak, who was saying how compassionate and strong woman Tifa was.

Pfffft. Like he knew her.

The short girl stared at lifeless body and reassured herself that that woman wasn't Tifa. Because that woman was cold and fragile, unlike Tifa. Tifa was strong, Tifa was protective toward people she loved, Tifa was friendly, Tifa was lively, Tifa was warmth and Tifa was love. Tifa was good memories of her cold, painful childhood. She was beautiful, she was a woman with golden heart.

And she was dead.

Some monster killed her.

Yes, monster, because no sane man would kill a woman like Tifa. Almost everyone loved Tifa.

Almost.

Yuffie glanced at the sky. Unlikely from movies, pouring rain didn't soak her. Warm, bright sun was smiling to Gaia from blue sky and it was quite warm day in January. Yuffie could think that everything was all right.

Except her sister was dead, lying in white coffin, clutching a bouquet of her beloved red roses.

Yuffie glanced at the people around her. Her sister's best friend (since Aerith died seven years ago), Jessie was sobbing in her boyfriend's chest. Her boyfriend, Biggs was silently watching the white coffin, biting his lips. Barret Wallace, a man who was practically a father to Yuffie and Tifa, was calming his little daughter.

Finally Yuffie's brown eyes landed on blond man, who was practically an elder brother to her past seven years. His blue eyes were dull and emotionless, his face was paler than usual, his long, white fingers were tightly holding single red rose and Yuffie could see how tiny stream of blood flowed from a wound that caused sharp thorns of red rose.

Freak ended his speech with words "We'll always remember you, Tifa Strife" and signaled that they could place flowers on coffin and say something to deceased woman. Yuffie stepped forward and placed red roses to her sister's head. She didn't say anything. She didn't have words to express her emotions. First in her lifetime, Yuffie Kisaragi was speechless.

She nodded quietly and stepped back. Cloud placed flower on his wife's chest and caressed her cheek for the last time. Blood smeared young woman's cheek and Yuffie shuddered when she remembered her sister, lying in the pool of her own blood. Yuffie glanced at the body again. Deep cut on her neck with high collar of the white silk dress. Yuffie frowned. She read in books how dead people looked like they were sleeping. That woman didn't look like sleeping beauty. Hell, she didn't even look like Tifa. She looked like a mannequin, like she didn't live one second on Gaia.

Suddenly Yuffie realized that she feared and hated that woman in the coffin. Warm memories were fading and replacing by cold new ones. She averted her eyes from the corpse and glanced at sobbing people. Cloud was standing silently, watching his wife, probably saving their last time together. He met Tifa in the graveyard, when she brought white and yellow lilies for Aerith. Apparently she was the best friend of Aerith and he was the best friend of Zack, Aerith's boyfriend, who died with her because of a car accident. They shared same pain, the pain of loss someone, who is close to you, who is like a member of your family. After that fateful meeting Cloud became a permanent member of Kisaragi-Lockhart Family.

Ironically, they first and last met on graveyard.

Yuffie would burst into laughter if the dead one wasn't her sister and brooding one her brother.

Cloud closed coffin and stepped back. White coffin lowered into the earth and vanished from their sight.

It was over.

They said their goodbyes. Now Tifa vanished from their lives like a meteor, that could bright everything and then disappear from the sky. Yuffie heard how Cloud told her that he could take her to her house, but she shook her head. She needed to be alone. She needed time to meet harsh reality, where her lovely sister was dead, butchered by some madman.

Yuffie went to her home and glanced people around her. They were laughing and her heart squeezed. It was unfair. She lost her sister, her best friend and they were laughing, like nothing happened.

Because nothing happened to them.

Dark haired girl stormed into her house, hastily freed herself from the thick black coat, black dress and high, heavy black boots and slipped beneath heavy blankets. She curled up and sighed. She needed long sleep, then she could think about her new life.

She dreamed about her sister. She was tall, warm and with a lovely smile on her face. Beside her stood Aerith and Zack and Yuffie thought that everything would be okay again. She wasn't alone. She had uncle Barret and elder brother, who could take care of her.

But her hopes shattered when the ringing of her PHS woke her up. She yawned and lazily climbed from the bed. Young girl slipped her hand in the pocket of her black coat and grasped PHS. She glanced at the screen. The number was unknown, but she still answered.

"Yes?"

"Are you Yuffie Kisaragi?" Voice from other side asked. Yuffie scratched her cheeks.

"Yes." She answered.

"Are you related to Cloud Strife?" Voice asked.

"Yes, he's my brother." Dark eyebrows furrowed. "What's wrong?"

A voice from the other side sighed.

"Miss Kisaragi, I'm sorry, but your brother died half hours ago. His motorcycle crashed into a tree. He died immediately."

PHS dropped on the carpet and Yuffie felt how her world and hopes shattered once again.

* * *

 **What have i done! :o *gasps* I killed my favorite female character. *sobs* Someone kill me! ;-; Well i needed her death. Oh and sorry, Yuffie is too bitter and broody in this fic. But hey, she lost her sister and brother. Tragedy changes everything.**

 **Okay, now i can kill myself. What have i done! ;-;**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2.**

Yuffie was standing in front of the grave. Again. She was clutching a bouquet of red roses. Again. She was speechless, staring at the gravestone. Again.

She sighed and placed red roses on gravestone. It was a week, since her brother-in-law died. His coffin was closed - after the accident, he was a mess of torn flesh and crushed bones. Yuffie didn't want to vomit on his coffin.

The short girl groaned and sat on the grassy ground. In the depths of her heart, she was glad. She was glad that her sister wouldn't be alone on the other side and her selfish part was glad that Cloud wouldn't fall in love with another woman and would stay loyal to her sister forever.

Yuffie shrugged. She knew that her thoughts were horrible, but she couldn't and wouldn't change herself. She wasn't a saint and she had her flaws, her dark, selfish parts. And she accepted herself with her flaws. If someone didn't liked her because of that, they could fly a kite.

She sighed again and spoke:

"You know, Chocobo-butt, I'm not angry." She closed her eyes. "I'm just sad. And I don't know what should I do. I'm all alone now." She glanced at Tifa's gravestone and shook her head."I know that I have Barret and Marlene and a bunch of friends, Teef, but I'm still alone without you guys. When I'm coming to home from school, I don't know what should I do. Normally I would call you and talk about my school-day. But now you're dead." She practically yelled and groaned. "Great, I'm talking to dead people. It's time to visit psychic." She covered her face with her hands. She sighed heavily and closed her eyes. Darkness. She liked the darkness. It was calming her eyes and her nerves.

"You don't need to talk psychic because of that." Deep, cold voice spoke. The short girl removed her hands from her face and turned her head at the directionthe voice. Behind her was tall, dark-haired man with the single red rose in his hands. His rose-colored eyes were watching her carefully.

"Thanks." She mumbled. Her brown eyes stared at the flower. "You brought red rose too?"

"Red roses were my friend's favorite flowers." He answered dryly. Yuffie chuckled.

"What a coincidence, they were my sister's favorite flowers too."

"You brought them for your sister?" Man pointed at a bouquet of red roses. Yuffie shook her head.

"Nah, I brought them for my brother-in-law." When she noticed his curious look, she explained. "Well, Cloud loved Tifa and Tifa was a red rose. Beautiful, strong and symbol of love." She said sarcastically and mentality kicked herself. Since when is she so sarcastic and bitter?

'Since your sister died.' Her mind answered. Yuffie didn't argue.

Apparently man noticed mockery in her tone and raised his eyebrows.

"You don't think that red roses are a symbol of love?" He asked calmly. Yuffie shook her head again.

"No." She answered flatly. She remembered her dead sister, lying in the pool of her own blood. Her body and dress was reddened with red liquid and she looked like she was covered with scarlet roses. Red roses no longer were symbols of love for Yuffie. "They are a symbol of death, blood and destruction. They disgust me."

Something sparked in the man's eyes. Something that looked like curiosity.

"And in your opinion, what is the symbol of love?" He asked. Yuffie stroked her chin.

"White roses." She answered immediately. "They are pure, beautiful, pleasant, and they can hurt you." She added wryly. A man slightly smirked, thrust his hand in his pocket and took a small piece of paper from it. He extended his hand.

"There's my address and PHS number. I have a garden of white roses. If you want to see them, call me."

Yuffie took the paper from his hand and nodded. The man slowly turned around and walked. When he placed a red rose on his friend's gravestone, he could feel how brown-black eyes watched him.

* * *

Youngest and only member of the Lockhart-Kisaragi Family was sitting with his best friend, Serah Farron and talking about some 'hot-creepy freak from the graveyard.'

Serah drank her cherry juice and bit her hamburger. She chewed large portion of roasted meat, swallowed and grinned cheekily.

"So was he hot?" She asked teasingly.

"That's not important!" Yuffie exclaimed. When she noticed her pink haired friend's expression, she sighed. "He was smokin' hot. Are you happy now?"

Serah nodded and gulped half of her juice. She cleaned her lips with a napkin and announced:

"You should call him."

Dark haired girl's jaw dropped on the table.

"What?" She nearly screamed. "No friggin way, Serah. He's a stranger!"

Serah shrugged.

"And he will be a stranger the rest of your life if you don't call him."

"Serah, NO!" Yuffie growled quietly. Her friend shrugged again.

"Suit yourself." Her blue eyes stared at something. "Some old man is coming here."

"What's he want?" Yuffie asked. "Maybe we occupied his favorite seat."

Serah shrugged again. Her water colored eyes were frozen on that old man. Yuffie turned her head around and saw a dark-haired man in a blue suit with a small case in his hand. He stood beside her and smiled politely at the dark-haired girl.

"Miss Kisaragi?" He asked. Yuffie nodded.

"Yes?"

"I'm detective Reeve Tuesti." He announced. "I wanted to talk you about your sister and brother-in-law."

Serah stood up.

"I'll leave you." She told her dark-haired friend. Yuffie shook her head and pinkette smiled. "I should meet Noel now." She grinned and waved her hand. "Bye, Yuffie. Bye, Mr. Tuesti."

Mr. Tuesti watched how a short woman left café and cleared his throat.

"Miss Kisaragi..." he began, but Yuffie shook her head.

"Call me Yuffie. Hearing 'Miss Kisaragi' makes me feel old hag. Now what you wanted to talk to me about?" She asked.

"Your brother-in-law crashed into a tree when he was drunk." Tuesti announced and Yuffie scoffed. So that blond chickenhead was drunk. Typical Cloud, running from his problems.

She let out tired groan.

"And what you wanted to tell me about Tifa?"

"We were checking our older cases and we found something interesting." He said quietly and opened his case. He took some papers from it and placed them on the table. Yuffie glanced at them. They were pictures of beautiful women.

"Rosa Harvey, Terra Branford, Lenna Tycoon, Rinoa Heartilly, Oerba Dia Vanille, Tifa Strife." He saw how the young woman froze at the last name. He continued. "We found something similar in their deaths. Someone slit their throats and it wasn't for robbing."

"And they are very beautiful." Yuffie whispered. She was looking at her sister's picture.

"Yes." Reeve agreed. "You can say that they are unnaturally beautiful. We call slayer 'the beauty hunter.'"

"What a badass name." Yuffie mumbled. Her eyes traveled from her sister's picture to the man in front of him."When died Rosa Harvey?" She asked quietly.

"Three years ago." Reeve answered and lowered his head in shame, unable to see young woman's furious eyes.

"That 'Beauty Hunter' started killing three years ago and you're doing nothing?" She spat.

"You are wrong, Miss Kisaragi." Reeve answered. "We can't do something. Everyone is in ShinRa army, everyone wants to be a SOLDIER. But no one wants to be a detective or a cop. It was pure coincidence, when we found pictures of dead Lenna Tycoon." His eyebrows furrowed.

"Like hell i care." She growled. "It's not my fault that policy is full with empty-headed idiots." Yuffie snarled. "It's not my fault that some maniac is free and walks in the streets of Midgar." Her eyes sparkled from anger. "It's your fault. Because of you he's still free and because of you my sister was killed three weeks ago." She stood up and grabbed her purse. "Good bye, Detective Tuesti. Wish you luck with catching that bastard."

* * *

Yuffie wrapped thick blanket around her tightly and lick her spun full with strawberry ice cream. Her sister would scold her. Tifa never let her eat ice cream in the middle of January.

Spoon disappeared in her mouth again. She sighed and rubbed her cold hand on her frozen neck. Next morning her throat would be her personal hell in Midgar.

Blackish-brown eyes were glued on the flat screen of TV. She was watching her favorite TV-show. It was slightly annoying, because she was book-reader and knew the end of an episode, but she still watched how big, bulky man thrust his armored fingers into his enemy's eyes and after that how that big-ass bastard crushed poor blinded man's head. Yuffie sighed. Dead man was her sister's favorite character.

She swallowed another portion of ice cream, when her PHS rang. Yuffie sighed and looked at the screen. It was Noel.

"Yes, Noel?" She asked with a slightly annoyed voice. After her family's death, Noel called her often, checking if she was still alive. It was very, very annoying. Yes, Yuffie had a terrible childhood until Tifa adopted her and yes, two weeks ago her adopted sister and brother-in-law died, but Tifa teach her to never give up and Yuffie Kisaragi was a really good student. Cutting wrist or drowning in the bathtub would be disgrace of her sister.

"Yuffie, is Serah with you?" The man from other side asked.

"Nah, we parted four hours ago." Yuffie answered and remembered that Serah was supposed to meet Noel. "She said she was going to meet you."

"We were supposed to meet hour ago, but she didn't come." Noel replied. Yuffie scratched her nose. "Maybe she is with Lightning?" She asked. Lightning Farron was female SOLDIER First Class. Sister of Serah and good friend of Tifa. Although she wasn't on funeral. Maybe it was too hard for her, watching how your best friend's disappearing in large hole of the earth.

"Lightning said that she saw Serah yesterday." Noel answered. "Light started searching Serah in the streets of Midgar. She says that Serah is danger, because there's not a chance that she would skip our date without warning. I'm in sector six now."

"I'll search her in sector seven." Yuffie said and climbed from the couch. She ended the call and slipped into her high leather boots. The dark-haired girl groaned before grabbing purse and storming out of her apartment.

* * *

Cafe 'Feather Of Frozen Phoenix' (the place where Serah invited Yuffie for dinner. Despite the lame name they had good dishes) was in sector seven. It was a clever thing to search her strawberry blond haired friend there. Yuffie sighed and glanced at blank streets of Midgar. And she felt like a fool. Searching small girl like Serah in Giant city like Midgar was a stupid act. But wasn't going to just sit and wait. She knew that the policy of Midgar would start searching Serah only after forty eight hours and if Farron junior was in danger, every minute and second was precious to her friends and sister.

She was in front of 'Seventh Heaven', famous bar of Midgar, when she saw a familiar silhouette.

"Barret." She called. "Barret, turn your big-head around."

The large man turned around and his scowl broke into large grin.

"Brat, it's you. What are ya doin' here?"

"I'm searching for my friend." 'Brat' answered. "Can you help me? She is slightly taller than me with blue eyes and pink hair." Her brown eyes rounded when she stared at the big man with plea. He sighed and nodded. Yuffie grinned and slapped his shoulder.

"Thanks, old man, I owe you. You can leave Marlene to me, whenever you wish." Old man mumbled something when she left him and resumed searching.

* * *

She sighed and rested her palms on her knees. She was tired from searching.

"Where the hell are you Serah." She mumbled. "I'll find you and then i'll kill you with my own..." her words died on her lips when she saw pool of red liquid and body, laying on it.

She shivered when she stepped forward. 'It can't be!' Her mind screamed. 'It isn't Serah."

And then she saw familiar pinkish curls.

'They're pink from blood.' Her mind argued.

Familiar icy blue eyes.

'Serah isn't only one with blue eyes.'

Familiar rounded cheeks, pink lips, straight petite nose.

'This isn't Serah. This is just an imposter.'

Familiar pink coat, creamy wool blouse, light pastel green skirt and high light brown boots.

Familiar long, wide cut on her throat and bluish-purple bruises on her neck.

She gulped, brought her phone to her face and dialed familiar number.

"Noel." She whispered. "I found her."

* * *

 **So, what you think? I know that my grammar is horrible, but i'm trying.**

 **Really**

 **Leave a review**

 **Pretty please**


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